Mar 11
According to my credit card statement the last time I bought clothes was Oct 22, 2009. My New Year’s resolution for 2010 was not to buy any clothes for all 0f 2010. And I didn’t. It was not to save money. It’s that I wanted to spend the money on travelling. And I did.
Today is the day to break the diet. One year and 5 months without buying any clothes. Not bad. I love clothes and I absolutely do not NEED any clothes. My closets are still bulging. Well, maybe I need socks. You can see my toes through most of my socks.
My two shopping friends and I have an appointment with our fashion consultant this very afternoon.
It is a very gray day and it is snowing lightly. Nothing better on a gray day than to go shopping to lift the spirits.
Wish us luck.
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Tagged with: clothes, diet break the diet fashion diet new years resolution, The Great American Apparel Diet, travel
Dec 13
“The present in New York is so powerful that the past is lost.”- John Jay Chapman (broker who became president of the New York Stock Exchange)
As the holiday season rolls on, I have been pushed more and more to rethink the ways in which I spend my hard earned money. In the past 6months I will be honest and say that I have done a little shopping here and there, I’ve never really been one to go out on large spending sprees and although I do love shopping, it has never been my greatest vice. That being said, I am continuing to learn new things about myself as well as the ways in which people spend their hard earned income. I (for the most part) save and attempt to spend redirect my income towards things that I know I will hold close to my heart regardless of the season or the changing fashion trends, that thing is traveling, my true love. It has taken me many years to become a savvy traveler and I am currently two days back from my first trip to New York City. During my five-hour flight from Seattle to New York I had a lot of time to ponder how I managed to be so fortunate to be able to do such things and I have come to several conclusions; one of these conclusions being that it is most difficult to make the decisions than it is often to execute the task post decision making. Human’s will power is incalculable; sometimes we just need to see a goal at the end of our long winding roads to be able to make our decisions. By not buying that designer dress that was on sale from this past summer (amazing deal might I add) I was able to spend that same amount of money on another nice meal in New York (Kobe beef burger and dessert, so much better)! Every one of my decisions is a conscious thought out decision that I weigh out and consider as a tradeoff to my overall goals. Is the dress worth a train ticket? Would I buy these items if they weren’t on sale?
Being part of The Great American Apparel Diet (though now a fully active dieter) I now find myself questioning my purchasing choices beyond just my clothing. One of my personal vices is Starbucks and every time I go in to get my grande soy chi, I can’t help but question what I am trading for this one overly priced sometimes-daily purchase. During my trip to New York I was inspired in many new ways. Most of the clothing I saw during my little shopping adventures was consistently stylish (even though it was 30 degrees) but during my whole trip I held myself back purchasing many items and pushed myself to remember those tradeoffs and ask myself the important questions about why I’m even thinking of buying a new pair of black boots when I already have two. The streets, shops, and restaurants, of New York are glittered with holiday cheer and life, and I would not have been able to experience this if I had not asked those questions on a daily basis and put into perspective the trade-offs to my everyday choices. Trade-off in economic terms is defined as “losing one quality or aspect of something in return for gaining another quality or aspect. It implies a decision to be made with full comprehension of both the upside and downside of a particular choice.” In those split seconds at the register I have found this to be a greatly valuable piece of information, which has saved me money time and time again. Because I have been able to make these decisions I was able to do one of those things which I truly do love, seeing a new and beautiful place in this world and once again opening my eyes to the possibilities of forward progression and change in my future, life and career.
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Tagged with: budget, shopping diet, travel
Nov 26
Upon my return from Europe I have been bombarded with advertising and media telling me that I must attend the newest and greatest sale of the season. Now I’m free and willing to say that I am an American, I have been reminded of this over and over again and it is part of who I am, a greatly loved part in fact! But the thing that I’ve been thinking about lately is the extremes in which I seem to be living in. Now I’m going to try my hardest to not make generalizations and to not assume things which I do not know, I’m merely on a long run on thought that I can’t seem to part with. I guess what I’m getting at is while spending a month abroad I noticed some differences in daily behaviors of people of these two regions of the world. It seems as though many of us are living within two extremes that give us no space of contentment between our pleasure and our pain. Now shopping has clearly become associated with a level of pleasure for many of us, but perhaps it would not appear to be such a pleasurable experience if we focused on making daily life much more pleasurable in itself instead of the usual dragged on process of work and chores of going here and doing this. Perhaps instead of waking up early to find the next great deal on Ruelala.com or running to that 4am holiday sale, we should make goals that are not so immediate. Long term goals about our health, about running a marathon that we all know we thought about that one time and about spending just one more second to listen to someone who is trying to tell you their story or ask for your advise.
The thing is that there are 24hrs in each day, and although we are creatures of habit and get used to operating in these certain ways because we are used to them, it doesn’t mean we have to. I’m just wondering at what point we lost that excitement about the first snow of the season or a warm cup of hot chocolate and transferred that excited to new shoes and Seven Jeans. While walking through Barcelona a month ago I saw one of the simplest things that brought me the biggest smile, a little old woman standing on her balcony early in the morning watching people walk by with her coffee in hand (pictured left). It was at the beginning of my trip and it was one of the first clear moments that I realized that I don’t see this in my city and that I was not only geographically far from home, but I was far from my culture of to-go cups and drive through food and if I was going to really enjoy my time abroad, I was going to have to rethink the way I operated on a daily basis. It’s hard to avoid the mania around the holidays, but perhaps it might make it just a little less stressful if we practiced those good old breathing exercises and maybe take a moment to watch the snow fall sitting from a cafe with a cup of coffee in real cup instead of one of those throw away holiday to go cups (although they are quite cute).
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Tagged with: travel
Nov 10
There’s nothing like deciding you are not going to do something (i.e., buy clothes) to make you suddenly sensitive to temptation! I just returned from a business trip to DC, and I never realized before how much I use traveling to different cities as an inspiration for fashion. I like how women dress in Washington. It’s urban, but with quite the preppy feel, and without all the heavy clothes that you see (and that are required) in places like Boston. I felt very frustrated while I was there, and I realized it’s because I’m used to seeing great inspirational outfits on other women in other places and then going shopping to see if I can add a little bit of that flavor to my wardrobe. While this has been great fun in the past (as my Spanish sundress, funky British boots, jersey Australian tunic, and various Scottish cashmere scarves will attest), it’s something that I’m not doing this year, and I felt very deprived to realize that I wasn’t doing it. I didn’t really feel the need to buy other souvenirs, but I did feel like I was missing out a bit on the whole DC experience.
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Tagged with: diet, shopping, travel
Oct 05
Continuing on with my theme of spending money on experiences, not clothing, this past weekend I completed a half marathon at Disneyworld! It was officially the “Wine and Dine” race, but a better title would have been, “It’s Not The Heat, It’s The Humidity.” It was so brutal out there, I’m just glad to have survived!
I kept a close eye on my spending, saved all my receipts, and astonished my fellow travelers by not buying any clothing at all. At DISNEYWORLD, no less. I bought sequined mouse ears and a frame, and gifts for others. My greatest expense was food, but I knew it would be, and I knew it was important for me to be well-nourished while there.
All in all, considering the entrance fee, plane fare, hotel, and food, I spent about the equivalent of one nice handbag, a pair of jeans, and two pairs of boots. What I got in return was a much more meaningful experience, sense of accomplishment, and quality time with my friends than any fashion accessories could have delivered.
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Tagged with: budget, spending, travel
Sep 11
I am now home from Scotland and have much to think about, including my wardrobe. I always overpack, and I don’t think that’s unrelated to the fact that I also overshop, overstock, and overspend. Part of it is that my wardrobe is a bit of a crutch when I travel; I compensate for being unfamiliar with a new area by propping myself up with clothing and jewelry and toiletries. Instead of wearing just a few things that I know make me look good, I feel like I need to take half my closet “just in case.” Up until now, I’ve never asked myself – “just in case” what? Do I really think that, as a published researcher with a great job and a lot of experience in my field, I need a certain dress or pair of shoes in order to have confidence? Coming prepared for the terrain or the weather is one thing, but I shouldn’t need more clothing to feel prepared for more emotional travel challenges.
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Tagged with: diet, packing, travel
Sep 10
So I’ve made it through my 8-day trip in Scotland without buying clothing! This was harder than I thought it was going to be. Simply being mindful of my clothing shopping urges – stopping myself from buying a souvenir t-shirt, or not walking through a department store near the hotel – was very helpful. I didn’t realize how many times I day I find myself thinking about clothing! I still spend a lot of time noticing, interpreting, and re-envisioning what other people are wearing. But I managed to control my clothing acquisition urges.
I didn’t completely control my shopping urges. I did buy whisky, and I did buy a cashmere scarf that was of unmatched quality, at that price, anywhere else. But 95% of what I bought were gifts for other people, or something consumed as part of my experience (the local pub, a visit to the distillery, etc). I still need to balance my budget, and probably spend very little, when I return home, but I think I won’t miss arriving home with too many shopping bags and too much buyer’s remorse.
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Tagged with: diet, shopping, travel
Sep 08
Of course, the fact that I am in Scotland and am distracted by (a) a conference, (b) good whisky, (c) tea and scones, and (d) castles is a large part of why I am not feeling any urge to shop! However, I hope this 10-day break from my usual routine will in fact be the help I need to break from my regular shopping diet (and splurging). It’s been nice, actually, to make do with the little clothing I brought (it makes me appreciate what I left at home, for one thing) and to worry less about fashion and more about what fun things there are to do here. Last night I dressed more casually for a party than I have in a long time, and I had a blast! So maybe I am breaking away, a little bit, from letting fashion take over my life (and my wallet).
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Tagged with: diet, travel
Sep 05
So far, so good! I am allowing myself to buy gifts for others while here in Scotland, and have bought two inexpensive accessories and some toiletries for myself. I am sampling good whisky and indulging in the free museums and ever-present pubs. Being free from the “shopping urge” is quite nice, as that’s different from how I usually travel. It’s nice to know that neither my suitcase nor my closet will be more stuffed after my return!
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Tagged with: shopping, travel
Sep 03
So the TGAAD started on Sep 1 and on Sep 2, I flew to Glasgow for a business trip! Normally I will do a bit of shopping while on business trips, but this will provide a great environment for me to redirect my attention and my money! For starters, I don’t have extra room in my suitcase. I have the perfect clothes for the conference and the weather. I would like to spend my money on experiences (although the museums here are free), and on taxis, and on local single-malt scotches! Given all that and the exchange rate (which is not favorable for the dollar), I should be able to keep my shopping impulses in check, relax, and enjoy myself.
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Tagged with: diet, fashion, shopping, travel
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